Claimed *Completed*

"I'm already living on borrowed time. When it comes to it, it will be my time to go."

500 years ago Cathy should have died, but she didn't. She was saved by the Devil.

"I agreed to something ... Something that cant have been important then, it seemed too far away.I'd agreed, after five hundred years, to hand myself over to the Devil, to become his."

Now her time's up, but back in the city where it all started, things are far from over. Cathy finds out that there is more to the Devil than she ever thought. A new boy, a best friend and a deadly enemy, things are about to get complicated...

"No one's that good or bad, it's not that simple, nothing's that black and white. It's more grey."

*Hi, this is my first Movella, so I'd love some feedback and constructive critsism! Thanks :)

2. Tuesday, 4th January 2012

Tuesday 4th January 2012

“Where?”

“I already told you, Spain.”

“Yeah, but Spain?”

It is lunch time and Chrissie has finally found the time to interrogate me. I always feel bad in this bit because this is where I have to lie about my whole life. I feel even worse this time because Chrissie is one of those people who makes you feel bad without even knowing it, and I already like her, even though I’ve known her for a total of three hours.

“So, let me get thins straight,” Chrissie says, “you moved to Spain when you were four because your parents died in a car crash and you got placed with your aunt and uncle there, but you’ve moved back here because your uncle died and your aunt couldn’t cope, so now you get to live on your own, with only a couple of visits a month from a social worker?”

“In a nut shell.” Saying ‘yes’ feels more like lying, but, according to the government records, that is exactly what happened to me, although so far I have avoided getting visits from social services. And, I suppose it’s not all a lie: I did live in, Spain, my parents are dead, as well as my uncle, but then again, my aunt is dead too, along with the rest of my family. Maybe I still have a few very distant relatives that I don’t know about.

“You sure have a crazy life.” I like that about Chrissie; straight to the point and no sympathy, I’m way past crying over the dead.

“Yeap,”

“It must be awesome; you get to live on your own with no parents – what could be cooler?”

“A lot.” And I mean it, being normal is always nice.

“Come on,” Chrissie rolls her eyes, “You need to make the most of your freedom; I can’t even step out of the house without my parents knowing.”

“At least you have parents.” I say, raising my eyebrows.

“Yeah, but ones that are control freaks and won’t even let me throw a party.” As Chrissie looks at me her eyes widen with her newest revelation, “Cathy, you have to throw a party!”

I look sceptical. To be honest, I don’t want loads of drunken teenagers trashing my apartment.

“Please, I’ll do everything: decorations, entertainment, music, food, invitations! Please!” I look at Chrissie’s pleading face, what harm could it do? Wreck my apartment, get me into trouble with the police, and social services...

“Okay,” I shrug, “But you’re helping and nothing too bad. No drugs.”

“I’m not that bad! Please, have some faith.” But she’s grinning like a mad person, so at least something will come out of the party – her happiness.

“When do you want to have it?”

“Err... if it’s a sort of welcoming to the school party... but that would have to be really soon, and a party thrown together is not going to be the best party of the year...”

“Wow, you’re aiming high, aren’t you? How about my birthday? That’s in three weeks; it could be a welcome/birthday party.”

“Yeah, that could work!” I see Chrissie’s eyes light up and the cogs start whirring, “We will have enough time to get everything together, that’s a good idea, you know. You and I are going to make the best party planners ever.” She’s smiling excitedly now and I can’t help but smile back.

Birthdays are never a big thing for me, since I don’t age, but I’m not telling Chrissie that.

Chrissie suddenly thinks of something that wipes the smile off her face, “Uh-oh.”

“What?’

“How much is this party going to cost us?”

I hadn’t thought of that either, “Err, well, the best most perfect party of the decade? That could coat quite a lot, how much have you got?”

Chrissie winces and shoots me an apologetic look, “About £20.”

“Right...” I’m thinking now, I have quite a lot of money, and mean a lot. I’ve saved it over the years, but I’ve never used it much because it would only draw attention to myself. I won’t need the money anymore soon anyway.

“I was left quite a lot of money when my parents died, but I haven’t really used it yet. I could use that?”

“How much?” asks Chrissie, suspicious, but eager.

It’s my turn to wince, but for the opposite reason to Chrissie, “About £50,000.” That’s another lie, I’ve got millions, but that looks even more suspicious.

“Wow!” Chrissie stares wide eyed at me, if I’d just striped off and started tap dancing in the middle of the yard. “You could have told me you were loaded!”

I roll my eyes, smiling, “Well, you know, with the fact I’ve only known you half a day, I’m not really surprised I haven’t gotten around to telling you I’m ‘loaded’.”

“Still £50,000, that’s a lot,” she narrows her eyes, “how much can we use?”

“Um... £49,990? There’s a jacket I want for £10, but the rest is all yours, for the party.”

Chrissie, for the first time since I’ve met her, is completely speechless. After about a minute of staring blankly at me, she says, “I’m dreaming. I must be dreaming.”

I pinch her, and she jumps up and squeaks, “Nope, not dreaming, get used to it, you have free rein on £49,990.”

“Oh. My. God.”

“Yeah, that just about sums it up.” I grin, and Chrissie grins back. Suddenly we’re both doubled over laughing; two teenage girls have nearly £50,000 to spend on a party and three weeks to plan it. It’s not even that funny, but it feels good to laugh, so I keep going.

“Seriously though, we can’t spend all the money on a cake. £50,000 has to stretch to everything: cake, food, decorations, music, outfits...”

Chrissie smiles, “We are going to be the best dressed people there!” she nudges me, “Let’s save quite a bit for the outfits, yeah?”

I smile back, I feel lighter than I have done in years, like a great weight has been lifted. “Yeah.”

*

Friday, 7th January 2012

How abt massive balloons?? =D Cud do them wiv 16 on?? =D xox or is that too much?? =S xx

Chrissie and I have spent the last two days beginning to plan what soon became ‘the party of the century’. Now all I want to do is sit on the sofa with a book, but Chrissie is still texting me about the party.

I tried to convince myself that it would wear off, but so far the craze has continued, so it looks like I’ll be throwing that party after all.

It’s not that I don’t want to throw a party or that I don’t like Chrissie (it ‘s not that, I think she’s great), but at some point this year I’m going to disappear or die or something.

My plan was to go to high school and blend into the background. The problem is that now everyone is going to know me, which makes it a lot more difficult to disappear without anyone noticing, especially when I’m not even sure I’ll be around for my party.

How will it look if I invite everyone and then die? Not great. For one, I’d look like a really bad hostess, but I doubt anyone but Chrissie will actually miss me, to everyone else I’m just ‘the new girl’.

But that’s actually a big part of my plan ruined already; nobody is supposed to miss me. The thing is, I really like Chrissie. Every time we laugh about something or get excited about the party, I feel a pang of guilt for what I’ll do to her. I know that sounds really vain to say she’d get so upset about me, but I’ve seen happen so many times, I speak from experience, having anyone you know die is a really hard thing to deal with.

I’ve faked some quite elaborate deaths in the past, all very much centred on the assurance that I’m very hard to kill. But I haven’t done it for about two hundred years because it hurt too much to watch and hear the people I cared about mourning me; it’s made so much worse by the fact I knew it was me that caused all that pain.

That probably sounds really vain as well, since they cried a lot more than I did. I just don’t want Chrissie to end up like that, I really don’t.

My hermit life was so much less complicated.

I sink down into the sofa and put my head in my hands, trying to block out the memories that still haunt me, but it’s no use;

No! No, no, no, no, no! I can’t do this to myself; it’s all in the past, stay in the present, live now, not then...

I hurry to the bathroom and run the tap, splashing cold water on my face. It wakes me up and I sink to the floor.

But, despite the water, my eyelids begin to close. No! I fight to keep them open, but however hard I try I feel them close all the same, and I drift into the darkness... back to where it all started...